Business
Item 9 Labs Names Former Best Buy President of US Retail to Board of Directors
Item 9 Labs Names Former Best Buy President of US Retail to Board of Directors.
About this update from Item 9 Labs Corp.
[{"type":"text","content":"Mike Keskey, an Architect of Best Buy's Greatest Growth Phase, Joins Board to Guide Company Through National Franchise and Supply-Chain ExpansionPHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / August 6, 2020 / Item 9 Labs Corp. (OTCQB:INLB) ("Item 9 Labs" or the "Company"), a vertically integrated cannabis operator that produces award-winning products, announced today the naming of Mike (Mic) Keskey, retired former President of US Retail for Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY), to their Board of Directors as Co-Chairman, effective immediately. With this, Director Doug Bowden will become Co-Chairman.Keskey, who directed Best Buy's massive store growth in the 1990s and early 2000s, brings a lifetime of business achievements to the fast-growing Arizona-based Company. In his 16 years with the big-box retailer, Keskey advanced from store manager to President of US Retail for Best Buy, helping create a plethora of well-received standard operating procedures (SOPs) so successful he later saw them being taught to his school-aged children.Keskey recognized the need for SOPs early-on and created defined processes across every area of the retail business - inspiring Best Buy department leaders from merchandising to marketing and supply chain to product development to follow suit. His accomplishments also include changing Best Buy's sales tactics from commission to non-commission - disrupting the entire industry - recognizing that most hardware sold at the time were now commodities with low profit margins.Keskey's efforts reduced shrink by 70% while decreasing employee turnover, producing a more seasoned staff that could better serve customers in stores that had been re-designed based on his team's customer psychographic studies. Further, he turned electronic accessories and consumer warranties each into $5+ billion business segments. Keskey's achievements laid the foundation for Best Buy to open 80 stores a year. During his executive tenure, Best Buy's stock increased 11 times."Mic's track record of building well-defined processes that allow for fast-moving, national retail scale is unwavering," Andrew Bowden, Item 9 Labs CEO, said. "His strategic oversight will be a tremendous asset to the future of Item 9 Labs."After retiring in 2004 from Best Buy, Keskey spent a decade as a dedicated father, coach...